Return to the Fold
by Hulihana
Summary: The long awaited sequel to Into the Fold. Castle has been initiated into the group, but what happens when he betrays their leader's trust? Will he be accepted back into the fold? This story follows the detectives of the 12th precinct, and their lives as members of a group who are much closer than simply friends, co-workers, or partners while one member fights to return to the fold.
1. Chapter 1

**For everyone that read Into the Fold, here's the long awaited sequel. Please enjoy. For anyone that may be new to this story, I would suggest reading Into the Fold first or you may find yourself rather confused. I also want to warn anyone, whether they've read Into the Fold or not, this story is rated M for a reason and will contain sexual material later on. If you this is not something that appeals to you, please, do not even begin this story. Thank you.**

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><p>Detective Kate Beckett worked to hide her ever growing annoyance from the woman seated opposite her. The dark-haired woman, whom Beckett had dubbed 'The Cosmo Lady' as she'd forgotten her name, it's not like it really mattered anyways, was still asking her questions. Questions that she should probably be listening to so she doesn't answer with anything to personal that the reporter could use in her article.<p>

Stick to the script Kate.

Despite her best efforts to not even look at the goings on in the rest of the precinct, she couldn't completely keep her focus off the man in the middle of a photo shoot at the other end of the bullpen. Richard Castle. She scoffed at the name. What a pain in the ass. She couldn't believe that she ever actually trusted him. That she had told him many of her deepest secrets. Truth be told, she'd done a lot more than just talk to him as well.

Over the preceding months, she'd let him take her in nearly every position imaginable; along with the boys of course.

Beckett couldn't help but curse herself when she thought of the exact moment that she had decided to let the writer into her inner circle. When she had let the boys and her own feelings convince her that he really wasn't always the person who showed up on page 6. That he was capable of being an actual human being too. Well, he had certainly destroyed that by going behind her back to dig into her mother's case. An act which she had been perfectly clear would cause the end of their partnership both in and outside the precinct.

She should have known his sense of morbid curiosity would always overcome any sense of belonging that her team could possibly have instilled in him. It would overcome any responsibility he had to her and to her boys.

He was a selfish jackass and that's all there was to it. She had made a mistake by letting him in. One she never intended to make again.

And now, just watching him with the bachelor party twins hanging all over him with that smug smile on his face; she wished she didn't have to set her eyes on him ever again.

But wait, the reporter was still asking her questions. What was that she had just said?

"Really?" she asked. Ms. Cosmo hadn't really just said that had she. Oh, she had!

"By who?" As if she didn't already know. She needed confirmation though. Something she could use to kick Castle out of the precinct and her life permanently.

"By Castle." Ms. Cosmo replied, grinning as if she had hit the jackpot. And she'd hit the jackpot alright. She'd found the most egotistical, thick-headed writer of the bunch.

Ah and perfect timing. Here comes Montgomery. Now just to put her plan of giving Castle the boot into action.

"Would you excuse me for a moment?" she stated more than asked, not even giving the other woman a chance to argue before she was escaping the incessant questions, the answers to which she had mostly learned by rote and could just give the woman her study sheet of appropriate answers, and made a beeline for the captain.

"Sir, could I talk to you in private for a moment?" She asked as she stood from her desk and approached her mentor who was already headed in the direction of his office, "Please." She tacked onto the end of her request. He was, after all, her captain.

"Now" she added in a loaded tone, negating any sense of this being a request as she cut off his attempts to brush her off with some meeting or other he just had to attend to immediately.

"We had a deal Beckett," he began as he proceeded her into the office, having apparently decided that he wasn't going to be able to avoid her.

"The deal is off" she stated clutching her coffee cup tightly in her right hand, trying to keep herself under control. Really of all the arrogant-

She was brought back to the situation at hand by her boss asking what the problem was and she knew without a doubt that this was her one chance to get Castle and the interruption that was his presence out of her precinct once and for all.

"Not only does he have the bachelor party cop twins out there using him as a stripper pole," Beckett began, deciding to begin strong even knowing herself that this was laying it on a little thick, "while I make nicey-nice with the press, but do you know what he said?"

"No" Montgomery answered with an infuriating little smirk as if he knew exactly what was going on and he found it amusing to no end.

"He said he has been _instrumental_ in helping _us_ solve crimes" she stated contemptuously, the expression on her face akin to that worn by a lawyer who knew they had just delivered the winning argument in a case.

Unfortunately for Beckett, she had never gone on to become a lawyer, and her victory was short lived.

"Well hasn't he?" Montgomery argued back with a little shrug.

After a short pause in which she realized that her argument wasn't going to work as she had anticipated it to she came back weakly, "That isn't the point."

Beckett knew she had been beaten when he once again emphasized that NYPD's need for good press and that this order came directly from the mayor himself. As stubborn and strong willed as the female detective was, she knew that she wasn't going to win this one without a valid complaint against the writer and that she was better off putting up with his presence for a short time longer and saving the fight with Montgomery for another time.

"Ok, fine" she conceded, her jaw clenched. Just because she had accepted defeat against her captain, it didn't mean she had to like it.

She was summarily dismissed and in looking at her coffee cup, she realized that it was depressingly empty. And with a day like today, she was definitely going to need a double shot of espresso to make it through without shooting someone, namely Castle.

Beckett didn't even try to hide her smirk when she saw her boys hitting on one of the 'bachelor party cop twins' in the break room.

Having noticed her arrival, they both took their turns at making a jab at her. "Hey Beckett, how come you don't wear a uniform like that?" Esposito asked, looking her up and down with a knowing look.

"Because I don't want to get paid in singles, especially by you two" she snarked back with barely concealed amusement. Maybe she would surprise them the next time they were all together in a very different capacity outside of the precinct she decided. Filling the thought away for a later time, along with the one which wondered how Lanie would look in a naught nurse outfit beside her.

She noticed them both take a step back away from her and turned in time to see Castle poke his head around the doorframe. Great, just the man she had hoped to avoid for today. Well, forever if she were really being honest with herself.

"Oh, hey, don't we have that thing?" she heard Ryan remark behind her and knew that they were paying her back for her comment by leaving her alone with the writer. Maybe she wouldn't by buying that outfit after all. They didn't really deserve it anyways.

"No" Esposito replied, and she would have felt warmth at his apparent stand of solidarity if he hadn't still been wearing that smirk that always meant he had something up his sleeve.

"Yeah you know, that thing with the guy." Ryan just wouldn't give up, and now his expression matched that of his partner.

She turned to level them with a look, but couldn't completely manage to hide her earlier amusement at their antics.

"Oh yeah! That thing, with the guy." Esposito exclaimed as if having forgotten about it all along before they both ran from the room like dogs with their tails between their legs.

She had almost managed to forget that Castle was still in the doorway behind her, that is, until he opened his mouth.

"I just wanted you to know I had nothing to do with this." He began, and at her eyebrow raised in skepticism he continued trying to dig himself out of the hole he had created, "I mean, it was the magazine, I- well uh, the mayor, thought it would be good press."

"You don't have to explain yourself to me Castle" she answered, shrugging her shoulders as if she didn't have a care in the world.

"Really?" he asked hopefully. Oh, Castle, how naïve can you be? She wondered to herself if he really believed that blatant lie.

Regardless, she let him continue on in his fantasy world, "Really", until it all came crashing down around him.

"See. I don't care anymore." Beckett continued in that same light tone, "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have an interview to get back to." And with that she walked past him and out the door back in the direction of her desk.

But of course, he wouldn't be Castle if he just let it go and got out of her life for good. "What did I do that was so wrong?" he continued to argue as he turned and quickly caught up with her.

"The one thing I asked you _not_ to do." Her tone decidedly tense now but she continued to maintain her façade, not willing to allow her coworkers, not to mention the press, see her as anything other than her calm, confident, and always in control self.

"Ok, so you asked me not to look into your mother's murder, but look at what I found!" he exclaimed as if he were a little boys showing his mother something he'd found out in the yard and was desperately looking for approval. She repressed the urge to scoff. As if getting results excused his actions. As if breaking her trust were worth it.

She had put the case behind her a long time ago for her own good and she didn't hesitate to let him know that.

"We can get back to that interview now." She directed her next comment to the Cosmo lady who was still seated beside her desk, plastering a fake smile to her face once again, and summarily dismissing the man who had been following her.

She once more found herself reconsidering the cop uniform when Esposito interrupted, informing her of a murder and saving her from having to speak to the infuriating woman, or even more infuriating man any longer that day.

That is, until Ms. Cosmo piped in about how much her readers would just_ love_ to see Castle in action and of course, Montgomery had to hear the woman's comment and intercept any attempt to be rid of the woman.

"Well we wouldn't want to disappoint your readers now would we Detective?" he asked, and even though he was technically speaking to the other woman, everyone else in the room knew his comment was directed towards Beckett. The fact that this was a command was made even more clear by the glare that he leveled on his best detective, telling her in no uncertain terms to agree and to play nice.

She saw Castle turn to her, his face lit up in excitement, out of the corner of her eye and had to bite the inside of her lips hard to bite back the retort that was on the tip of her tongue, and instead answering with a polite, "Of course not sir."

With that Montgomery turned his back on the group and shut the door to his office behind them.

All three boys were grinning excitedly, though for very different reasons. Esposito's look kind of reminded her of when he compared watching her with Castle to shark week on television.

The only thought running through Beckett's mind; _Why me?_

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><p><strong>AN cont: Hey everyone, I want to start out by apologizing for how long it took to get this sequel started. I got side tracked by the kink meme and then school, but I'm back to writing now and here's the result. I've got the first few chapters as well as some random one's here and there already written so with any luck I won't have any trouble updating on a regular basis. If I do, you all have permission to yell at me, deal? Until then, let me know what you think so far, and if you've got any ideas of things you'd like to see in this story. I've got a working outline but as it isn't completely written there is some wiggle room for me to change things around here and there if I get inspired by something. Thanks for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2

"Since you two seem so giddy to have your girlfriend back, he rides with you." Beckett stated with a heated look at Ryan and Esposito before turning her back on the lot of them and striding out of the bullpen, her heels clicking louder than normal the only indication of the fury that was rolling through her.

Their dumbfounded expressions behind her even lasted long enough for her to get into the elevator and have the doors closed before they could catch up with her.

Of course, with Manhattan traffic being what it is, they were right with her the entire way to the crime scene, but at the very least she didn't have to deal with Castle's continued attempts to coerce her to let him back into the precinct, and into her life.

Her solitude didn't last long, when he ran over to her like an eager, overgrown puppy the moment the boys' car stopped moving and started up once again. Although the sight of him getting out of the back of Esposito's squad car was nearly enough to sway her for a second. And she found herself trying hard to hide her amusement when he offered to make it up to her by offering her a pony. The man was infuriating, but before all of this, she had developed a certain fondness for his childishness. At times.

"Focus, Castle. Crimescene, okay." She reprimanded, reminding both him and herself that it was time to act like a professional.

Her command lasted for all of three seconds before he piped up again, "It's raining men" he observed as they all looked upwards to see Lanie conducting her preliminary observations of the victim who was tangled in the branches of a tree.

"Castle? What are you doin' here?" she questioned, disapprovingly. Well, at least she knew she could count on Lanie to have her back.

"Don't worry. We're still mad at him." She confirmed for her friend, even as she heard two of the three stooges off to her side, "Guy in a tree… Mom and Dad bickering… Seems like old times."

Beckett decided to ignore them for the time-being. She'd get her revenge sooner or later, but now wasn't the time for that. Now it was time to be serious and find a killer.

"How's it goin' up there?" she questioned, indicating to the boys that it was time to stop joking around.

Unfortunately, her friend didn't seem to take the hint, "I've got branches poking my boobs and a spotlight shining up my booty." Lanie observed in a bored sounding voice.

Of course, this incited the childish tendencies of the rest of her team, and Esposito couldn't help but comment, "It could be worse. You could be wearing a skirt."

"When I come down, I'mma smack you." Lanie leveled him with a stern look, but it didn't faze the detective.

"I'll be looking forward to that."

Despite their banter, one wouldn't have assumed that Lanie and Esposito had been dating for the last two months. They had finally admitted their attraction for one another, and Lanie had even been accepted into their inner circle outside of the precinct. She had seemed to take the news exceptionally well for as long as the friends had been hiding the relationship from her, and well, it really was refreshing to have another woman added to the mix. Although, seeing as she was officially dating Javi, they changed their former strict rules that none of them could sleep together without everyone present. Lanie joined them every time the group got together, but it was also well understood that the pair could engage in whatever activities they wished to away from everyone else and that Lanie could opt out at any time without hard feelings from anyone else.

They did keep the relationship well hidden from everyone else at their respective workplaces to maintain professionalism and aside from Esposito's grin, this crime scene was no different.

"Here" Lanie warned before tossing a black leather wallet down to the detective and summarizing what she had found, "Vic's a white male, late thirties, judging from the cracked branches, I'm guessing he did a Superman off the top of that building."

"His name is John Allen," Esposito picked up where his girlfriend had left off, "ID has him living on the upper west side and business card has him in insurance."

"Is it a suicide?" a female voice asked and Beckett realized that the Cosmo reporter was indeed still with them. She'd almost managed to forget that she was tagging along and taking notes on everything she saw.

"It's not a suicide" Castle and Beckett spoke together, as in sync as they ever were.

Beckett couldn't have contained the eye-roll if she had wanted to as Castle jumped in to explain to the woman how he knew the man in front of them had been murdered instead of having killed himself.

At least she had managed to get some useful information, Beckett decided when Castle once again interrupted her investigation by turning to the reporter to explain exactly what a ligature mark was.

"Wow, you really know your stuff. No wonder they like having you around." The Ms. Cosmo commented, and it was the final straw for Beckett. She couldn't take one more moment of this little show-and-tell session that was going on without strangling someone, and at this point she couldn't decide who deserved it more; Castle, or that damned reporter. Maybe it was just a writer thing, a requirement of the job that you be exceedingly obnoxious.

Having decided it was best not to add another homicide to the boys' workload, she knew it was time for Castle and his tagalong to leave. A quick look at Lanie warned her best friend that she was going to be asking for a favor; one she'd be happy to repay in full at a later time. With an impressive amount of self-control, Beckett kindly suggested that his talents (talents? Ha) were currently being wasted and that he'd be much better off helping Dr. Parish take the body back to the morgue instead.

Of course, he wouldn't be Castle if he gave in that easily, despite her warning and the undercurrent of 'do as I say' running through her every action.

"Fine," he relented, "but I was serious about the pony." Then as he turned to direct his next comment at the Cosmo reporter, "C'mon, I'll show you the, uh, morgue… mobile." He finished lamely.

The three detectives all smirked openly when he had led her away and Beckett was able to get her investigation back on track. Why on Earth would she want a pony in Manhattan anyways?

"Anything found in the wallet?"

"Nope, drying cleaning ticket, ID, two credit cards. Cash was missing though." Ryan observed, handing the wallet to check it out for herself.

"It's a long way to go for a robbery." She commented, taking another look to the man in the tree branches.

She then sent the boys out to canvass the building while she waited for Lanie to finish her preliminary and descend from the tree on a forklift.

"Don't worry girl, you do your thing and I'll deal with Writer-Boy, but you owe me." The ME spoke as she passed by her friend and received a grateful look in return.

"Now what makes you think I wouldn't make this up to you Lanie?" she asked her friend, eyes wide with fake innocence.

Lanie just stared at her not buying her act for a second as she waited for the punchline. Beckett knew there was a reason she was so close to the feisty medical examiner.

"You'll just have to wait until after the case is over for me to do so which means you had better get back to the morgue and perform that autopsy." She finished with a smirk on her lips and glint in her eye.

The other woman quickly understood Beckett's reference and got a matching gleam in her own eye as she leaned forward to speak quietly, directly into her friend's ear, "Oh, I'll be looking forward to that girl. You know I always love our little rendezvous once you guys have closed your case. Will your writer man be joining us? I've always wondered what it would be like adding a third man into the mix."

And with that the fire in Beckett's eyes died a little and Lanie internally cursed herself for even bringing it up in the first place. That was one thought she should have kept to herself and she knew it. The wound was still too fresh in the taller woman's mind to poke at it. In fact, that may just be one other thing that would never really heal properly.

"No, he's never coming back." Beckett finally answered, interrupting the ME's internal berating of herself.

Lanie nodded in understanding before turning away and moving to meet Castle and the reporter at the van.

Beckett watched long enough to see Lanie and Castle get into the back of the transport vehicle and the reporter get into the front seat before she entered the building to see how the boys canvass was coming along. The longer she could be away from Castle and the painful reminder of how much of a mistake she had made by letting him in so deep the happier everyone would be.

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><p>Beckett hurried out to her cruiser and quickly pulled into traffic, aiming the car back for the precinct. She had sent the boys back to the precinct ahead of her when they'd gotten the call that the ME's van had been apprehended en-route to the morgue and while he never would have admitted it, she knew Espo wouldn't believe his girlfriend was alright until he saw her for himself.<p>

Having decided to save them all a little agony, she had assured them that she would finish the canvass herself, there were only a couple more doors to knock on anyways, and would meet them back at the precinct. Questioning the remaining tenants ended up taking longer than expected, however, and while it further validated her decision to send Ryan and Esposito back early, she too wanted to see for herself that her friend really was alright.

Arriving on the homicide floor of the twelfth, she could see Lanie examining Castle and upon seeing that they were visually fine, she made a detour to the break room for a quick cup of coffee before joining the group just in time to overhear Castle spouting some obscene theories about mad scientists.

Deciding to cut his rambling off before he really got going, she doused him with a cold dose of reality.

"Or the guys who killed him might have left some evidence behind."

Of course, she should have known, nothing that simple would be able to shut Castle up.

"Boring," he answered without even turning around and continuing on as if she had never spoken at all, "how about a spy having swallowed a top secret microchip that the enemy forces murder him over before the CIA can get ahold of him?"

Now at least he has turned to face her, as if challenging her to shoot him down again.

Challenge accepted, she thought to herself, but this time she had a much better option than just trying to get him to stop throwing out ridiculous theories that were more of a distraction than an investigative aid.

"As much as we all appreciate your insightful and incredibly believable theories, Ms. Cosmo is gone so I believe you can go home now." She smirked back at him, noticing out of her peripheral vision that everyone else had gathered into a group behind Castle to watch what to them must certainly be a very entertaining show. There had even been a time when she herself got quite the kick out of the banter that could develop between them. Of course, that time had ended as soon as she'd realized that he had gone digging into her mother's case. Now he was just a nuisance that needed to get out of her precinct so that she could continue on with her investigation.

"Oh, no no no no," Castle protested, standing and taking a step towards her, "and I'm a witness" he argued coming to stand at her side and looking towards the watching bystanders for help.

The boys and Lanie of course weren't offering him anything, they were securely behind her. Her boss on the other hand apparently hadn't gotten the memo, as with a lifted eyebrow and a small tilt of his head, he made his position on the matter of whether or not Castle remained in the precinct perfectly clear.

"Alright," She capitulated, speaking more at that moment to Montgomery than Castle even though she had spun on her heel to face him no more than a foot away. "I will allow you to work this one case with me if you promise to leave me alone when it's over and not to weasel your way back in."

"Deal." He answered, not backing down and staring back into her eyes. "But I will make you change your mind."

"I won't"

"You will"

Neither could resist trying for the last word and Beckett winced internally when she realized that Castle would win that round, since she couldn't continue without sounding like a petulant child repeating her argument over and over. Instead, she again spun around and made her way over to her desk.

"So what's the next step, talk to the victim's family?" Castle asked trailing behind her as he always had.

"Yes Castle," she huffed in irritation, "let's go."

This day really couldn't get any longer she decided as she left her untouched cup of coffee on the corner of her desk and led her shadow towards the elevator.

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><p><strong>So what do you think? Just as a reminder, and to reply to a couple of my guest reviewers, this is all happening during the beginning of season 2 of cannon. These aren't the same characters that they are today in season 7, and Castle looking into Johanna's case was a huge betrayal at that time that seriously hurt Beckett. Therefore, it's going to take some time, and yes some grovelling, before these two get their act together again. Just remember, this is the very beginning of a story that I'm expecting to be over 100k words. Just have a little patience with me and I promise it will get less rocky later on. Plus some more smut :D<strong>

**Also, for anyone who isn't new to this story, this is the newly edited chapter 2.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Sorry it's a little late, but you may all get another shorter story tonight as a reward for being so patient. Just a quick note that I understand this story is currently following very close to the events in cannon. This is done intentionally and the timeline will do so throughout the story, but after this first episode it won't be in the same manner as the last couple chapters have been. Things will veer off more and show what happens outside of the events of the show, as well as how they interlock with the plot of this altered tale. So just hang with me if you don't care for this current theme because I promise it won't hold true for the entire story. I just think that the events in the first episode really set the tone for the first part of the season and there isn't a good part to cut out without missing something important even if I tried xD**

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><p>The car ride from the precinct to the family's house was silent. That is to say Beckett had made it abundantly clear that she was uninterested in conversation when she immediately turned the radio on and cranked up the dial before even putting the car into gear.<p>

For once the writer took the hint without commenting or trying to speak anyways just to irritate her further. He must have noticed the aura of tension surrounding her and realized that he couldn't push much more without risking bodily harm. She actually kind of wished he had though, just so she had an excuse to wipe that smug smile off his face in a very different way than she had many times before in a very different setting.

They arrived at the victim's home without further incident and were greeted at the door by his wife.

This was always Beckett's least favorite part of the job, having to break the news of someone's death to their loved ones, but she was also the best at it because she'd been there. She knew what it was like to be on the receiving end of news that rocked your world to its very foundations. And it was because of this knowledge, that no matter how much she dislike this aspect of her job, she couldn't stomach the thought of putting it off on someone else; someone who couldn't empathize with the families of the victims the way she could.

Castle, thankfully, remained quiet and out of her way while she broke the news to the wife who seemed to be in a state of shock, silent tears trickling out of the corners of her eyes to leave tracks down her cheeks.

They allowed the woman her time to grieve until she seemed unable to sit still a moment longer and got quickly to her feet. "He was right here, just a couple of hours ago." She observed, looking at the front door as if her husband would walk through it at any moment.

Deciding that the woman was ready to talk, and wanting to forestall her downward spiral until after they had left, Beckett began to push for information.

"Do you know of any reason why he'd be in that part of town?"

The questions went smoothly and it didn't seem like the wife would be of much help, just saying that her husband worked hard and had just gotten home from a business trip to Albuquerque.

Smooth went right down the drain though the moment Castle opened his mouth.

"Are you sure he was working late?" the writer questioned, causing the woman to turn to face them fully and leveling him with a skeptical glare.

"What are you saying, that he was cheating?" she asked defensively before striding angrily past them into the middle of the living room before spinning back around again, "Every night he would walk through that door and the kids would just race into his arms, okay?" she raged, nearly breathless with anger and incredulity.

"And now he's gone. So don't ask me if he was really working late, tell me why he was killed." She finished scornfully, but also with a hint of pleading.

Beckett quickly stepped forward to intervene, before Castle ruined the entire interview, but the writer was not to be deterred, interrupting her attempts at an apology by questioning further, "What about phone calls, maybe late at night?"

"Castle!" She admonished, turning to him in exasperation, hoping that her disapproval still stood for something. Hoping that it would be enough to get him to stop antagonizing the grieving widow. He knew how she felt about the victim's families, and it was pretty clear that the wife had nothing to do with his murder. There was no need to push her like this when she was still processing the idea that her husband was dead.

Wait, what?

Beckett's whipped her head around to stare at the woman when she instantly brightened and informed them that one of the guy's her husband had fired would call late at night to yell at him about his termination.

The interview was turning out to have actually been useful, although Beckett was loath to admit that Castle had any part in helping make it successful.

Then came the moment that she had been dreading.

"Where is he? I'd like to say goodbye."

Beckett looked everywhere but at the woman, even looking to Castle for help but of course he avoided her, too busy studying an interesting spot on the ceiling to be of any help.

"About that… U-um we don't really have his body…"

"What do you mean you don't have his body? Then how do you know that he's actually dead?" she asked not even trying to conceal the spark of hope in her eyes.

"We had his body. We just… don't… anymore." Beckett jumped in trying not to allow the woman any more false hope than she already had. The last thing she needed was to hold onto the belief that her husband wasn't really dead.

"How do you-"

"It was stolen" When Castle finally did speak, Beckett found herself wishing that he had just continued staring silently at the ceiling instead. It took all of her self-control to keep from stomping on his foot for his careless reaction to the widow's continued questioning.

"Stolen?! How is a body stolen from the police?" the widow asked, her voice rising with each word as she stared at the two of them with wide eyes.

"Our ME's vehicle was stopped by several armed gunmen who proceeded to take your husband's body. We don't know any more details at this time." Beckett spoke, while directing a glare at Castle that dared him to speak another word.

"Well then I guess you should be out there looking for it instead of accusing my husband of cheating on me now shouldn't you." The woman snarked before walking to the door and holding it open in an obvious invitation for them to make their exit.

They proceeded to follow her to the door and out into the hallway, after which Mrs. Allen promptly shut the door firmly behind them with a roll of her eyes.

Beckett immediately turned around and found herself face-to-face with Castle, her eyes wide in disbelief at what had just occurred.

"That was awkward." The bestselling author commented. 'What an understatement' thought Beckett. That may very well have been the most awkward conversation she's ever had with a victim's family, and that's a bold statement coming from a veteran homicide detective.

"It just… it doesn't make any sense," she spoke her thoughts allowed as she moved on to the case, and away from the family on the other side of the door, "The guy has a stable, middle class life; good family, good job."

"Maybe his friend Max was jealous" Castle pointed out.

No matter what she may think of him on a personal level, Castle did seem to have a sixth sense of what she was thinking and know just how to help her arrive at the proper conclusions to solve a case.

"Maybe enough to kill him, but to steal his body?" she threw back, but it was a solid enough idea to look into it. She retrieved her phone from her pocket and hit speed dial number 3. She really needed to fix that too. The man who had betrayed her should not be the first person on her speed dial.

"Hey Esposito…"

After explaining Castle's theory to Espo she turned back around to find the writer staring at her.

"Still creepy Castle."

That seemed to do the trick as he lowered his eyes for a moment before looking back up to her once again, his eyes meeting hers as if he was able to stare directly into her soul. This time it was Beckett's turn to blink and look away.

"So, what's our next step?" he inquired his eyes lighting up like a child's at Christmas.

"I need you to go home Castle." She states quietly, her voice and face telegraphing the conviction behind her request. She needed some space to think and it seemed their connection hadn't broken over the summer as he opened his mouth as if to automatically argue, but then snapped it shut with a click of his teeth.

"Alright Beckett, I'll go home and see if I can get Alexis to play with me if you won't" he smirks, his eyes glinting with mischief and giving away exactly what kind of playing he has in mind.

"But if you need me…" he trails off meaningfully, his entire demeanor changing in the blink of an eye from horny teenager to her earnest partner. To be honest, Beckett didn't know how to handle the man, or her own swirling emotions.

He had betrayed her. She had specifically told him not to look into her mother's murder and he had gone directly out and done what he wanted anyways, just like the spoiled rich boy the tabloids portrayed him to be. But then on the other hand, she had thought she'd known him. She had slept with him, let him into their inner circle. She had vouched for him and it had come back to bite her in the ass.

Beckett needed space and time to think about how to react to his sudden return to her life and what his true motives really were. Did he just want to get into her pants again? He had yet to show even an ounce of remorse for what he had done, instead acting as if he were entitled to be a part of her life and those of her team.

She raised her eyes to meet his for a split second and released the bottom lip she hadn't even realized had been pulled between her teeth. Beckett nodded her head in understanding before turning and leading the writer to a silent elevator ride back out onto the street.

Castle strode away to catch a cab while Beckett got back in her cruiser to return to the precinct.

* * *

><p>"Yo Beckett, we've got him." She heard from across the bullpen nearly an hour after she had left Castle at the vic's apartment.<p>

Success she thought to herself, standing to meet Esposito at the murder board where he slapped the man's picture onto the board.

"Alright, take Ryan and go pick him up." She ordered, turning around to make for her desk and nearly running headlong into Montgomery.

"Got something Beckett?"

"Yes sir, we found a man who used to work with the vic until he was fired. His wife said he's received several late night calls from this man, Max Haverstock, upset about having been fired. The boys are about to bring him in now."

"Good work Beckett," he said turning as if to go back to his office before turning back, "Oh, and um, where's Castle?"

Beckett froze like a deer caught in a pair of headlights. Busted, she thought wryly. She knew it was too good to be true that she had gotten rid of the writer for the entire afternoon. She really must have done something wrong in another life to deserve this kind of torture now.

"C-castle sir? He, uh, went home?" her answer coming out as more of a question.

"Home?" Montgomery repeated, his voice communicating his displeasure.

"Yeah, he wanted to check in with his family, right Beckett?" Ryan asked, coming to stand at her shoulder. Good old Ryan, she'd have to remember to give him a special treat the next time they were all together. Maybe after this case…

Focus. Beckett ordered herself as she met her captain's calculating gaze.

"Oh, well, if that's all then I expect we'll see him back here by the time Ryan and Esposito have returned with your victim?" his question coming across as more of a command, and Beckett knew that's exactly what it was.

"Of course sir" she replied conceding to his demands.

With that, Montgomery turned once more and this time proceeded to his office, but not being throwing one last warning glare to Beckett and her team before shutting the door to his office with a sense of finality.

'Play nice' his glare read and it was with a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach that she knew this would be her last warning.

"You owe me." Ryan's whisper in her ear breaks Beckett from her thoughts and she whirls around in surprise, having completely forgotten that the Irishman was standing behind her.

"Oh, don't worry Ryan. I'll make it up to you later." She replied with a smirk and brushed past him as she returned to her desk to prepare for the coming interrogation.

The man gulped heavily before rushing off to find his partner. The sooner this case was solved, the better.

* * *

><p>"Are you sure this is the guy?" Beckett asked, watching through the two-way mirror into interrogation.<p>

"Max Haverstock. And he confirmed he knew the vic." Espo answered, a matching look of confusion on his face.

"This guy couldn't throw a wet sponge off a roof, let alone a body." Castle threw in his two-cense from her other side.

Castle had readily come back to the precinct when she had called to let him know about their latest development, while still making it known in no uncertain terms that she was less than thrilled about having to make said phone call.

She only spared the writer a quick glance before straightening up and looking back at Esposito who rewarded her with a sympathetic look. He knew how much she didn't want the writer there, and how wounded she had been by the man's actions. How wounded they all had been.

Unfortunately, orders were orders, and Montgomery had made it clear that she had to allow Castle in on all aspects of the case. In this moment, that list included interrogations.

Beckett didn't even look at the man this time, simply walking past him into the hallway, but leaving the door open behind her as an open invitation to join if he wished. The author of course followed at her heels as she entered the interrogation room.

"Mr. Haverstock" she began, catching the man's attention.

"Yes"

"Do you know why you're here?"

"No, they just told me I needed to come in."

"It's about John Allen. He was murdered last night?"

"That's terrible" the man answered, confusion written all over his face.

"You and he were friends?" Beckett continued.

"We had adjoining cubicles."

"When was the last time you saw him?"

"Oh, not since D-day. That's what we called it. D for downsizing."

"You were let go?" she asked, something the man had said pricking at her subconscious.

She continued the interrogation, questions flying fast and furious across the table to her suspect who was becoming more and more animated; agitated.

Castle watched the two, his eyes moving back and forth as if he were watching a ping pong match.

"Is that why you killed him?" Beckett asked, going in for the kill.

"Who?" Haverstock asked, confusion evident on his face as he derailed her entire line of questioning.

"John" Beckett answered, hoping to salvage the momentum she had been creating this entire time.

"Why would I want to kill John?"

"For firing you." She replied, now nearly as confused as her suspect.

"He didn't fire me. We were let go together on D-day. Fortunately I was able to find another job."

"He didn't have a job?"

"Guess he doesn't have to look for one anymore."

Beckett gave the man a withering look for that last comment, and had to physically restrain a huff of frustration. She had been so sure just moments ago that this was their guy, and now it seemed that their case had just become a whole lot more complicated.

As she met Castle's eyes, she remembered that it wasn't the only thing in her life becoming more complicated with every passing moment. In fact, she kind of wished she could have just called in sick today. Or for the whole week for that matter. What were the chances that Montgomery would buy that she had come down with food poisoning?

Castle gave her a questioning look as she grimaced having answered her own question. The man was leaving her to suffer. No way in hell was he letting her out of this mess now. She would just have to figure out how to handle Castle on her own and employ one of her favorite methods of stress relief with the aid of her team after the case had been closed.

A time which couldn't come soon enough for Beckett.


	4. Update

Hey everyone, so I have some bad news. My laptop crashed and I literally lost everything, my outline, about 5k words of my next chapter, and a handful of upcoming chapters that I had written. I know it's been a ridiculous amount of time since I last updated and unfortunately it's going to take more time to get everything back as I don't even have Microsoft word at this point. I do however promise that this story hasn't been abandoned, I had been actively working on it and will continue to do so. Also, for anyone who isn't new to this story, I did go back and edit chapter 2 if you're interested in re-reading that. Otherwise, give me a couple more weeks and I can hopefully start posting again.


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